A global research university with over 24,000 students, Drexel University is one of America’s 15 largest private universities and ranks among the country’s top 100 institutes of higher learning. “Student response to Drexel’s unique Music Industry program has grown exponentially since it was introduced in 2001,” says Allen Sabinson, dean of Drexel’s Westphal College of Media Arts & Design. “We recognized the need to expand the popular recording, mixing, production facility to effectively support the two tracks of our popular Music Industry programs Recording Arts & Music Production (RAMP) and Music Business. In the spring of 2017, after a $4.5 million fundraising campaign, Drexel engaged WSDG Walters-Storyk Design Group to design its 21st -Century audio production and education complex.

“Our RAMP and Music Business programs had achieved immediate success thanks largely to an exemplary faculty endowed with impressive music industry, arts, production and management experience,” Dean Sabinson explains. “While our original studios met our initial needs, growth in enrollment and advances in technology required that we build a state-of-the-art facility worthy of our ambitions. From the beginning, our cadre’s combination of real-world smarts and technical /creative skills inspired our early students to embrace the entrepreneurial requirements as well as the hands-on recording proficiencies essential for success in this field. WSDG founding partner, John Storyk, had guest lectured for our early classes. We were familiar with WSDG’s extensive educational facility credits and they were the obvious choice to create these new world-class teaching/production studios.”

WSDG Partner/Project Manager, Romina Larregina reports that, “Drexel’s new One Drexel Plaza Building provided us with a superb blank canvas to create a teaching/ production facility that would meet all their initial needs and provide the luxury of additional space for future expansion. In 2016, we developed a design program that incorporated their flagship studio (1,500 sq. ft.), which featured a corner window from the student collaboration area with views into the main recording room. A post-production control room (140 sq. ft.), (2) midi labs (1,000 sq. ft. each), a spacious student lounge and a unique (800 sq. ft.) archive suite,” Larregina says. “This state-of-the art facility, designed with the latest audio and video equipment, customized acoustic treatments and fully isolated environments provides the students the ultimate hands on learning experience.”

“I agree,” adds Ryan Schwabe, Drexel Assistant Teaching Professor Music Industry Program. “The first critical listening course I taught in Studio 1 sounded absolutely beautiful. The low-end extension is very precise and the mids are really detailed. WSDG did a great job!”

“The early success of Drexel’s Music Industry Programs was primarily faculty based,” said Director/Associate Professor Music Industry, Jim Klein. “Our professors have substantial real-world credentials, hit records and business accomplishments. They’re dedicated teachers and committed to preparing next generation pros for an industry that constantly morphs through warp speed changes in production technology, music styles and distribution formats. From day one our students revealed a passion for the industry and an appreciation for the straightforward knowledge we share with them. Our new facility is designed to immerse them in a literal rather than a virtual environment.”

Associate Professor Toby Seay points to the Drexel Audio Archives as a key example of the studio’s ability to combine ‘old school’ chops with ‘new world’ realities. In 2003, when Sigma Sound Philadelphia’s landmark recording studio closed its doors, Drexel was entrusted with the studio’s 35-year multi-format (1/4” mono to 2” multi track) tape library. This priceless collection of more than 6000 master tapes is now housed within the One Drexel Plaza archive, and is available to aid students in learning the art of multi-track mixing, and preservation practices. “Drexel does not own the copyright to these master tapes and we cannot exploit them for gain,” Seay says. “But, they represent an irreplaceable font of recordings in every conceivable style, rock to pop to soul to the inimitable “Sigma Sound” itself, and they afford our students the opportunity to learn from the best of the best.”

“I have been designing recording studios for nearly fifty years, and have had a lifelong commitment to audio, acoustic and architectural education,” remarked WSDG Founding Partner, John Storyk. “Lecturing at schools, colleges and universities throughout my career, and speaking with students and educators in the U.S. Europe and South America, has tremendously enriched my own education. I learn something new almost everywhere I speak. Questions from sharp young students and tenured professors alike have deeply informed my design thinking. We always welcome the opportunity to help create teaching facilities like this new Drexel complex. It’s a privilege to apply our skills to creating studios dedicated to training tomorrow’s engineers, producers, recording artists, studio owners, educators and potential clients.”

Newsam Construction and MXMA Architecture & Design are proud to announce the rebirth of the former RCA Victor Studio in the St-Henri district, in Montreal. La Hacienda Creative, a leading Canadian sound creation studio, becomes the new tenant of the emblematic 5,000 sq. ft. (465 m²) space. In breathing new life into the building, Paul Schapira, head of Newsam Construction, and Maxime Moreau, founding architect of MXMA Architecture & Design, have succeeded in paying homage to its historic past, while envisioning a vibrant future.

From the onset of the project, Alexandre Beaulieu, General Manager of La Hacienda, and Brian D’Oliveira, the company’s Creative Director, received guidance from Newsam Construction’s Paul Schapira, who provided a very specialized construction approach to their new premises. The defunct RCA Victor Canada site was originally one of the most important buildings in the sound and music industry, renowned in the 1940s for its rare acoustical engineering.

After years of neglect, recapturing the historic essence of the space would prove to be a formidable challenge, particularly given its proximity to a major highway. The intervention of architect Maxime Moreau was urgent.

“The clients wanted to work with an architect with creative ideas,” explains Paul Schapira. “Maxime and I have worked together on several projects over the past three years and I immediately thought that he was the right person for this job.”

“When we agree to work with a client, it’s because they understand the added value of close collaboration with an architect,” says Maxime Moreau. “Rather than approaching projects in monetary terms, we strive to infuse even greater passion into a client’s ideas, and to take them to a level they thought was unattainable.”

The process begins with understanding who the client is and where their vision is headed. Maxime Moreau believes that a shared vision between the architect and the client is the catalyst for developing more creative solutions that transcend traditional architecture. From the outset, the strategy was to provide the client with design reference points and ideas, enabling the client to participate in the creative process and to reinforce it. La Hacienda Creative wanted to develop a hub of creativity, while instilling a sense of community that would be reflected in the built environment.

“My vision for La Hacienda was to make it a very different studio,” says Brian D’Oliveira. “It’s more of a venue for a creative team than a traditional music studio or post-production studio. It’s an integrated space where all stages of sound production can be realized.”

Once the plans were drawn up, MXMA and Newsam tackled the technical challenges of the project, as well as the materials, construction processes and design elements. Alexandre Beaulieu was also fully invested in achieving the common goal. While Newsam focused on the construction and technical challenges of the site, the collaborative process between the parties continued on all levels.

“My role was to ensure aesthetic continuity of design elements throughout the building,” explains Maxime Moreau. “In addition to the design of each piece, it was necessary to ensure a homogeneous transition between the spaces.”

Community spirit sets in at the entrance to La Hacienda Creative’s new facilities. People feel welcome in a large open reception space that feels like a living room. Beyond the effective design elements, wall-mounted instruments convey La Hacienda’s spirit to every guest. A spirit of sharing and connection is also conveyed by large windows looking into the studios, and by the communal sink outside of the washrooms. The kitchen area, with its large island, is designed to host events.

On the other side is the Satellite Room, named for its historic role as the birthplace of Canada’s first satellite. Bleacher seating allows teams to work in a reflective space away from their desks. The space also promotes open-air meetings and musical performances, as does the open staircase that ascends one level. Under the mezzanine, the repair and transformation of instruments is carried out in an open workshop area. Once dark and gloomy, the MXMA team transformed the space into a bright and lively place through the integration of new windows overlooking a terrace to the south. In addition to providing an abundance of natural light, they offer views of the historic building, also visible from the bleachers, like a window on the past of a great era for the sound industry.

In order to stay within budget when selecting materials, Maxime Moreau decided to retain as much of the building’s existing concrete flooring as possible, which had previously been covered with linoleum tiles. Varnished chipboard panels cover the bleachers and stairs, evoking the complexity of wood instruments. Several of the old RCA recording studio doors were recovered as a design statement, while modern architectural solutions were applied to revamping the Victor Room, the building’s original studio. In addition to new acoustic walls, floors and ceilings, each room was designed to contain sound and to insulate other tenants of the building against it. Additionally, the shape, textures and finishes of the control room were completely redone.

“We brought expertise in soundproofing to this project, as well as notions of intimacy,” notes Maxime Moreau. “We are experienced in condo construction, so the idea of building small boxes within a large box, while designing acoustically independent parts, is one of our strengths.”

That expertise was also applied to the construction of La Hacienda’s ceilings, using springs to absorb vibration, and in the design of air-conditioning and heating systems that are extremely discreet and quiet. Despite an abundance of concrete beams and low ceilings, Newsam and MXMA overcame the buildings technical challenges in order to provide La Hacienda with a truly unique sound studio.

About La Hacienda Creative

Created in 2007, the La Hacienda team consists of 10 sound artists who develop projects in the realms of video gaming, television, advertising, museums, virtual reality, events and products. The goal of the studio has always been to shape the world through truly unique sounds. Whether using leading edge technologies or traditional methods, La Hacienda applies a wide range of techniques to the achievement of unforgettable results. Over the years, La Hacienda has acquired more than 800 instruments that fuel the creative process and drive their projects. The extensive collection ensures that no two projects are alike. La Hacienda’s studio was custom designed for modular workflow management and interaction, ensuring that each project unfolds swiftly, creatively and collaboratively with their clients.

Tiel’s new culture building, “Zinder”, is situated between the city centre and the river Waal. The new culture cluster pulsates and stimulates and invites the inhabitants of Tiel and the surrounding area to participate. Music or dance lessons, follow a painting course, borrow books, rehearse with your band and go to a pop concert, it’s all happening in Zinder. De Zwarte Hond, commissioned by Koninklijke VolkerWessels, was responsible for the architectural, urban and landscape design.

The municipality of Tiel is actively boosting the attraction of its city. The qualities of the river Waal will be exploited more fully and the relationship between the city centre and the river reinforced. The level of facilities is being raised and access to the city centre will also be improved. Zinder is an important component of these plans. The project is very meticulously embedded between the river, the historic city centre and the formal Rechtbankstraat. What carries the plan is the raised culture podium: a new plaza with the volumes of the arts centre (Zinder Education) and the public library. The podium exploits the differences in height of the venue, transforming it into an attractive recreational area that will function as an extension to the culture building – blurring the boundaries between inside and outside. The differences in height are transformed into usable spaces and an intimate viewpoint overlooking the river is created. A four-storey, underground car park ensures that the former parking area on the Waal can, in future, be used for events. By separating the entrance to the car park from the building and also thereby giving it shape, the city centre gains a new, welcoming entrance. Visitors to Zinder, but also to the adjacent Agnietenhof Theatre & Film Theatre and the city centre, can park here.

Zinder Education, the centre for the arts, is housed in the “golden lantern” which floats as it were above the culture podium. Next to it, there is a robust, natural stone volume where the library is located. While Zinder Education is a prominent landmark in Tiel, the library seeks more connection with the historic city centre. The central entrance hall forms the link between the two volumes. Here visitors meet and inspire each other. The multi-functional hall that lies sunken beneath the lantern accommodates 320 people.

The remarkable façade of Zinder Education comprises faceted aluminium elements, anodised with a golden colour. Together, the folded panels form an origami pattern presenting a constantly varying image to the inhabitants of Tiel, depending on the perspective, weather conditions and time of day. The large windows provide a view of what is happening in the building. From the street you catch a glimpse of the dancers rehearsing, see sculpture students at work, and your attention is drawn to a concert in the multi-functional hall. The stone façade of the library is chiselled, whereby the solid volume becomes livelier and lighter and stands out from the podium constructed from flame-finished, natural stone. The façades have storey-high glass strips that guarantee maximum contact between interior and exterior. Here, too, the large windows reveal what is happening inside the building. By designing the window frames in gold aluminium as well, it all becomes part of the “golden lantern” family.

The outdoor plaza flows subtly into the interior, to the central hall that spans the entire height of the building. This is where all the users of the culture cluster converge. The library has an open connection to the hall and there is a cafe directly next to the main entrance. The art library displays its latest acquisitions here, and the tourist information desk and the Tiel archive have their counters here. The sculptural staircase is the eye-catcher providing access to the studios, classrooms and offices on the various floors. The multi-functional hall is also accessed via the central hall, so that it can also serve as an exhibition space, for example. When used in the evening as a pop music venue the hall has a separate entrance via the plaza.

“Zinder is a stunning building and a fantastic stimulus for Tiel and the wider region, especially as regards cultural life. An open and welcoming setting for the realisation of the core of our mission: experience, discover and connect.” The words of Ruud van Zuilen, director of Cultuurbedrijf Tiel.

Zinder is a Design-Build-Maintain-Operate project. The consortium for the project was comprised by the following Koninklijke VolkerWessels companies: Gebr. Van Kessel, Van Hattum en Blankevoort, Stam + De Koning and HOMIJ Technische Installaties. Facilicom Services Group will be responsible for the maintenance during the coming years. In addition to De Zwarte Hond, Pieters Bouwtechniek and Peutz were involved in the project. The landscape design was done by De Zwarte Hond in collaboration with Felixx Landscape Architects & Planners.

Odeon gives the people of Funen an international-class theatre and concert venue. Since 1 March, the 32,000 m² cultural venue has included theatre, concerts, art exhibitions, communal meals and public events. This will be celebrated enthusiastically during the next week, when more than 100 events will take place at Odeon.

“It will be fantastic to see Odense rally around Odeon during the next week,” says Klaus Toustrup, CEO of C.F. Møller and the architect responsible for the Odeon project.

“Now we will really be able to see Odeon as a new interpretation of the ‘City’s Modern Community Centre’. This building will be buzzing with life all week, with exhibitions, concerts, plays and happenings, and with people meeting up for communal meals. Now we can see the vision for Odeon being achieved, as a culture generator for the community,” says Klaus Toustrup.

Odeon and Odense Municipality’s major new culture initiative, and the new complex with four venues, as well as the Danish National Academy of Music & the Acting School in Odense, all under one roof. The building also has a number of youth residential units and a grocery store.

“The programme for the week shows a little of what the building can be used for – from major productions to very small events. Odeon is a new venue as the hub and lever for culture and the conference industry in Odense,” says Odense’s Mayor, Peter Rahbæk Juel.

Odeon gives Odense a whole new type of cultural venue that is also open when there are no concerts or conferences. This is the first completed building at the former Thomas B. Thriges Gade, making it a visible symbol of the city centre’s transformation. Odeon is a key player in the transformation of the area into a new, car-free quarter with close connections to the harbour, city centre and station.

“Odeon has a very high standard, a location in the heart of Denmark and a size that in future will draw in even more exciting artists and major conferences,” says Peter Rahbæk Juel.

Odeon is intended to be a building that not only offers opportunities to the cultural elite, with major concerts and theatre productions. It is also a place for everyone, where children and adults can sing, dance, laugh and spend time together.

“This is the unique aspect of Odeon. The building’s functions ensure that users can be mixed and combined. Odeon is a place where no two days are ever the same, where the public are always challenged and changed, making the dynamic and development constant,” says Klaus Toustrup.

“You can shop for your everyday groceries, while others enjoy magnificent concerts, a tasty meal or art inside or outside the building. This mix is the key to making Odeon a fixed aspect of Odense’s development,” says Klaus Toustrup.

The opening week will culminate on 5 May, when Her Majesty Queen Margrethe visits Odeon to attend the week’s gala show.

The new music and theatre hall is created to be a cultural power centre with four stages and the Carl Nielsen Academy of Music under one roof.

power centre with four stages and the Carl Nielsen Academy of Music under one roof. The great hall accommodates approximately 1800 spectators, while the small hall accommodates approximately 300 spectators. There is also a chamber music hall and a rhythmic hall. The Culture centre also has a restaurant, bar/lounge with access to a roof terrace, offices and canteen as well as a parking basement.

The site is located in the Hans Christian Andersen Quarter and borders both the historical town and contemporary multi-storey housing. The varied townscape has provided inspiration for the architecture. The development is composed of a number of town houses, the heights of which vary in harmony with the neighbouring buildings.

The volume of the building is thus reduced in its impact on the urban fabric, and the subdivision helps create varied and small-scaled urban spaces surrounding the Concert and Theatre Hall.

Two of the buildings stand out in their solidity: the Great Hall and the Stage Tower. With a luminous white exterior, these form a contrast to the otherwise dark relief facades, and help to bring a sense of identity to the cultural centre. The white surfaces can be used for image projections to tell the surrounding world about the activities in the building.

The cultural centre will acquire the character of a city within a city, as the various buildings will be linked by glass-roofed arcades, squares and open spaces which connect with the surrounding neighbourhoods.

The foyer acts as a ‘cultural marketplace’ all day long, and the highly flexible acoustic and functional layout of the great hall, with its basic geometry inspired by the Italian baroque theatres, guarantees a multitude of uses besides concerts and opera, such as dance performances, conferences, fashion shows etc.

Perched on the beautiful Branich hill in Schriesheim near Heidelberg, this music room with roof terrace for a violinist offers an unforgettable panorama of the Upper Rhine Valley and the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region, with Speyer Cathedral in the far south, and Biblis nuclear power station in the north.

Built by a widowed mother of two in 1958, the original blockwork house was converted into a two-family house in 1974 with the option to vertically extend at a later stage. The resulting 50m2 roof terrace proved to be too large and exposed to the elements to be used comfortably. The music room sits atop half of the 1974 extension, and, along with the new timber decked terrace, is the last piece in completing the house.

New building regulations and the fact of current inhabitation called for a light and fast construction method. Designed as a prefabricated timber frame construction, the lightweight structure of the room and terrace was delivered in fi ve parts and erected in a single day.

The sandwich walls are insulated with wood fi bres blown under high pressure into the construction. On the outside the timber structure is clad with an insulated render system in a dark-beige colour on wood fi bre boards. The deep and distinctive horizontal brush fi nish of the mineral render is in stark contrast to the smoothed walls inside.

The dominant colour inside is dark brown. Used for both the walls and the ceiling it is contrasted by the pine wood window frames and sills, and the maple wood of the fl oor. The dark hue dims the generous sunlight which travels through the large openings and which is refl ected by the pale floor.

The three openings are positioned in such a way that they offer unobstructed views onto the valley immediately after entering the music room from the existing living room.

All windows are top hung and fully reversible aluminium clad timber windows. A deep canopy on the west facade protects the panorama window from direct sunlight. Eight curtains are drawn into niches integrated into the structural mullions of the panorama window. The small side window and the sliding door can be closed with insulated aluminium roller shutters.

Like the floor, the bespoke door is made from maple wood but stained dark to match the walls. Similarly, all services parts such as sockets, switches, luminaires and radiators are of anthracite colour.

The music room provides a low carbon, sustainable and recyclable contribution to contemporary architecture. It was designed, cost-estimated, specifi ed, tendered, negotiated and contracted by Studio Becher, London. A local architect was commissioned to coordinate the construction site. The London offi ce of Studio Becher remained lead designer during the construction phase, visiting the site on a regular basis.

]]>https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2017/10/18/a-music-room-in-schriesheim-germany-by-studio-becher/feed/0442037Casa Rana and Music and Art Centre in Tiruvannamalai, India by Made in Earthhttps://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2017/07/30/casa-rana-and-music-and-art-centre-in-tiruvannamalai-india-by-made-in-earth/
https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2017/07/30/casa-rana-and-music-and-art-centre-in-tiruvannamalai-india-by-made-in-earth/#respondSun, 30 Jul 2017 11:32:08 +0000https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/?p=428794Article source: Made in Earth

The project originates from a partnership between Made in Earth and Terre des Hommes Core Trust, an ONG which takes care of children in troubles (abandoned or orphans, disabled or abused), giving them a home, an education and possibly following till and through the employement age.

MiE and TdH share a strategy made of small interventions to be spread all over the region, so to create a network capable to multiply the positive effects of each one.

The Community Hall (now M.A.C.) of Tiruvannamalai is one of knots of this network. It’s a place where all the NGO community (children, parents, tutors) can gather together and also meet the other citizens of Tiruvannamalai. A place where the ONG open itself to the whole town and tell its story: the building had to contain a permanent exhibition of the NGO evolution through the years, and occasionally guests public events.

The building is in a region characterized by a hot wet climate, with frequent floods. But there were other and more critical conditions: mainly the limit of the budget, as well as of the local technical skills and capabilities; then the impossibility of having a standard process of the works and therefore to keep a real control on the project.

The design approach of Made in Earth is quite pragmatic and (possibly) not self-referential, that means trying not to impose any pre-constituted idea: this helps, for instance, in the selection of the materials, that are chosen keeping in mind their cost and real availability, rather than a personal imagine of exotic architecture.

Simplicity, both conceptual and constructive, was a fundamental point.

The M.A.C. is conceived as unique, semi-transparent wall, rolling itself in a spiral, continuously changing its curvature and height, and leading to a inner covered pavilion. Area being equal, the spiral allows to develop a longer path, enough to narrate the Foundation story (illustrative panels will be installed along the wall), and to create an unusual spatial sequence: the wall is made of concrete hollow blocks, whose texture merges outside and inside, while people approaching the building can perceive the overlapping of the spiral’s coils.

The perforated wall, of course, filters the bright natural light into a diffused, smooth one, and takes advantage of the natural cross ventilation to refresh the pavilion.

All blocks are handmade, with an assembling scheme that creates a kind of pattern, while varying the wall density; the blocks have been used also as a part of the formwork for the pillars casting, and so to quicken the process.

But in the end, it reminds the “jaali” technique, the great perforated screens of the traditional indian architecture.

Creative adaptations, a beautiful mess and plenty of great fun are the playful combination reflected in this building, designed by Studio PLP Co., Ltd.

SOI 16 is a pub and music venue in the famous night life street known as Walking Street in Pattaya, Thailand. Influenced by the essence of Thai architectural design, triple- gables are used as the main structure of the building, along with clay roof tiles lining the front gable. The check and stripy façade, borrowed from the pattern of the Pa Kao Ma (traditional Thai sarong), plays well with the mess of electricity wires in front of the site.

“Our intention was to make this building like a street Thai Sala, combining many fun Thai gimmicks and cultural characteristics,” the architect said.

Once visitors step inside, they are immediately notice the fun and cheerful atmosphere that was inspired by the lively environment of a traditional Thai fresh market. The seats are made out of fruit crates, the DJ booth is based on a truck that delivers fruit to the fresh market, while the tables are made from road signs. The kitchen and cashier areas are designed to look like market stalls, while the typography used throughout the club was inspired by the font used on the stickers that are ubiquitous to delivery trucks in Thailand. All of these quirky details reflect the fresh market theme.

The design of the club’s restrooms is influenced by market butchers, with white and red tiles, neon signs of meat, fish and poultry, and a general atmosphere like the interior of a giant fridge. The restroom signs are Sita and Hanuman, famous characters from the Ramayana.

Continuing the local theme, the stairs leading to the upstairs mezzanine section of the club feature iridescent metal railings inspired by the chrome motorcycles favoured by Thai teens. The upstairs Sports Bar features pool tables and booths designed like tuk-tuk seats, but in colours that are more contemporary and chic.

SOI 16 mixes and matches aspects of local Thai street culture in a fun and playful way. This idea is reflected in the first thing that visitors see from outside the club – the bright neon “Soi 16” sign amusingly clashing with the exterior architecture! The subtle and not-so-subtle details clash and combine to make a truly modern yet local space – a space that puts well-known local details into a new context, resulting in a fun, familiar yet surprising spot for socialising.

55TEC Recording Studios represents a new level of production sophistication for China. A significant investment in world-class design and top-flight technology, the studio was created by WSDG – Walters-Storyk Design Group, leading acousticians, studio and systems designers. Studio owner and Golden Melody Award-winning recording engineer, Li You joined forces with Wu Yongheng, (AKA Bei Bei, China’s top drummer and, record producer), and with leading pro audio exec. Lizzy Zhou, to address China’s rapidly expanding desire for pop and rock music.

In announcing the completion of 55TEC Recording Studios Li You said, “With China now acknowledged as the world’s second largest economy, we have seen a huge increase in the market for popular music. Over the past ten years a number of major artists have developed tremendously loyal followings here. China’s appreciation of recorded music is enjoying phenomenal growth. As our discretionary income increases, and as talented new artists create music that appeals to large numbers of fans, this time in our history appears ideal to establish a recording studio and record label to meet this demand.”

To insure their ability to create the highest quality recordings, Lizzy Zhou reached out to WSDG. “Founding partner, architect/acoustician John Storyk has a global reputation for outstanding studio design,” Zhou remarked. “WSDG studios are exemplary, from Jimi Hendrix’s historic Electric Lady in 1970 to NY’s Jungle City and Paul Epworth’s amazing The Church Studios in London, both of which are highlights of WSDG’s eleven TEC Award-winners list, made them our only choice.

“WSDG Partner/Project Manager Joshua Morris did an excellent job of coordinating this international project,” Zhou adds. “His experience and professionalism helped make a complex process extremely efficient and gratifying. WSDG Partner/Director of Design Renato Cipriano traveled from Brazil to perform the final room tuning, and the speakers in our Control Rooms sound absolutely incredible. We could not be happier with our beautiful new recording studio,” Zhou said.

Ensconced in the basement of an exquisite residential building in one of Beijing’s most exclusive quarters, the 5000 sq. ft. 55TEC complex is an incomparable showcase structured to meet the most sophisticated recording requirements. WSDG partner Sergio Molho reports that the 430 sq. Studio A Control Room has been precisely tuned to provide a superlative listening environment. Fabricated with extensive perforated wood and slotted metal wall and ceiling paneling, and highlighted by a handsome custom rear wall diffuser, the studio defines the term ‘world-class.’ A striking glass-framed image of a vintage Teletronix Compressor/Limiter tuning knob is positioned on the wall to the left of the console to balance the 7’ w x 6’ h soundproof window into the “exceptional musical” 500 sq. ft. Live Room. The 55TEC management team’s technical expertise enabled them to outfit their studio with superb equipment, including an API 1608 console, Quested Q412D, QSB118 and Barefoot MM35 speakers, Burl B80 Mothership, Pro Tools HDX, and a host of impressive outboard gear housed in a custom-built producers desk.

“We were honored to have been selected to design this important new studio, and to have had the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to China’s thriving pro audio industry,” Sergio Molho said. “Li You, Bei Bei and Lizzy Zhou, have impressed us with both their enthusiasm and their realistic business plan. They have built a world-class studio, and they are developing an incredible group of artists. They share a deep affection for music, and they are fully committed to creating a meaningful place in China’s (and the world’s) musical community. We will watch their success with great interest and pride in having helped them create their wonderful new studio,” Molho concludes.

The House of Music of Pieve di Cento was born out of the desire to create structures and spaces suitable for two programs: concert promotion and musical teaching in the municipality: the Music Society of Pieve and a Middle School with musical emphasis.

The architectural language is inspired by the musical tradition rooted in the city, resulting in a building comprising various independent elements, not unlike the “instruments” in an orchestra which collectively enhance the whole. The reference to musical instruments is also achieved through the choice of oak wood paneling, which wraps exterior and interior and permits – as in the bodies of the instruments – the containment and amplification of sound.

The building consists of 9 small circular music laboratories, linked by a “piazza” that acts as a distribution space and becomes a place for sharing and dialogue among young musicians. This central area is also intended for ensemble music and small rehearsals. The House of Music is located in a portion of the former Lamborghini manufacturing area which, after careful restoration with the help of the municipality, has been renovated and transformed into a leisure park. The site is reached by a bicycle path that connects it to the city center and the new expansion district south of the historic center, while a curvilinear wooden bench runs around the building and creates resting and restorative places facing the park. The House of Music thus becomes a space that can be used at any time of the day: a gathering space for the community, not only those in the music field. Illuminated externally, at night, the House of Music appears to the people as a constant and comforting “lantern” to encourage the resumption of musical and recreational activities in the aftemath of the earthquake.

The buildings have load-bearing masonry structure, useful for its high thermal inertia and a sound insulation. The ventilated facade cladding, formed with curved oak slats, guarantees excellent energy performance and gives the building a striking architectural quality. The design pays particular attention to the acoustics of interior spaces through materials and strategies for reducing reverb. An autonomous system for each classroom guarantees flexible use of spaces at all hours of the day.

This Contemporary Music Centre (SMAC) is a musical complex consisting of two auditoriums of very different kinds and recording studios, linked by a public space called the deck, running from one side of the building to the other. It is designed on the principle that, instead of being mere consumers of entertainment, people can construct their own evening by moving from one place to the other.

The site is a corner of the Bel Ebat fairground, on the edge of the historic town centre of Evreux. The difficulty lies in the size relation between the new building, rather small and non-central, and the fairground, a huge empty esplanade. One of the challenges of the architecture is to create a synergy with the fairground activities – fetes, flea markets, circuses, etc.

To resist and exist in relation to the vast expanse of the fairground, the structure is dense, sculptural and autonomous. The main concert hall is on the first floor and sticks out, overhanging the entrance on the northern side.

For acoustic reasons, the concert rooms and recording studios are separate concrete boxes.

The whole structure is enveloped in a light metal skin, a double wall or over-roof that acts as an additional acoustic feature. From the outside, the volume is opaque, composed of triangular facets, some of them made of polished stainless steel that reflects the surrounding trees. It is imbued with a dual internal motion, the movement of the deck that crosses it and the movement of the roof which rises gradually to envelop the main auditorium. The deck operates like an immense interior/exterior hall stretching from the street to the esplanade. This course distributes and shows the different entities: main auditorium hall, local radio station studio, recording studios and the club, live-music café with its glass double façade fan folded for acoustic reasons. The deck opens southwards to become a wide porch, an urban theatre that acts both as a terrace for the club, and as a stage for outdoor concerts or shows.

Hérault Arnod architectes is a Parisian architectural office founded in the early 1990’s in Grenoble by Yves Arnod and Isabel Hérault. The team comprises about fifteen architects with different profiles and from different nationalities who share a discriminating and prospective vision of architecture.

The office develops diverse programmes, from micro to macro, from small architectural objects to territorial scale projects. The clients are both public and private. The office escapes from the idea of programmatic specialisation and designs projects for working spaces, concert and theatre halls, sport and cultural equipments, housing buildings, mixed programmes, etc.

The office’s work includes the Cité Internationale de Rennes, the Brest Arena, the World Head Office of Skis Rossignol, the Bicycle Building, the 9/9bis mine conversion in Oignies. Concert halls (La Belle Electrique in Grenoble, the Metaphone, the SMAC in Evreux) or the Anglet Theatre. The main in progress projects are the Espace Mayenne (an arena in Laval), offices in Nantes and Grenoble, a hotel in Paris, the Trois Pays commercial and leisure centre for Unibail.